All of Me
by Ermily
Summary: What I think should happen after the season finale. Rizzles, for sure.
1. Introduction

Maura's breath caught in her chest and for once, she could only stare dumbly at her friend instead of offering reassurance to console her.

"Maur?" Jane dropped the pregnancy test on her counter. Her hand moved to rest on the smaller woman's arm, but she jerked away from the touch.

"Jane, that is disgusting," Maura wrinkled her nose and the detective rolled her eyes. "Please wash your hands before you spread the germs from your urine-"

"Okay, okay! Jeez." Jane tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice and moved to wash her hands at the kitchen sink. She was a little hurt that her best friend had not responded at all to the admission of her pregnancy, and honestly needed someone to tell her that everything was going to be okay. That was usually her Maura's job.

What Jane wasn't expecting was for Maura to walk up behind her and lock her arms around the taller woman's toned stomach. Jane leaned into the embrace and sighed at the feeling of Maura's warm body pressed against her back.

"Are you going to tell him?"

Jane turned the water off and leaned her damp hands on the kitchen counter for support. For a moment, she was silent and concentrated on the tiny rush of air that rustled her hair every time Maura exhaled. Maura sensed the other woman's insecurity and tightened her grip around her waist.

"I… I don't know." Jane pushed back from the counter and reluctantly turned around, breaking their embrace. Their eyes met for a brief second before Jane's fell toward the floor. "It's just- he's back doing what he does best, and I don't want this to keep him from that. To keep him from being happy."

"And what about you? What do you want?" The words slipped out of the honey-blonde's mouth before she could stop them, and Jane eyed her curiously.

"What do you mean?" Jane's eyes quickly darted up to scan Maura's face, and she blinked in surprise at the worry she saw there.

"Will doing this by yourself make you happy?"

There was an awkward pause in their conversation and for a moment, Maura wondered if she should have kept her mouth shut. However, Jane broke the silence almost immediately.

"I won't be doing this by myself," She whispered in response, her eyes locked onto the other woman's. "I'll have you."

For the second time that evening, Maura was rendered speechless by the detective's words.

"It's totally okay if you don't want-"

"I do." Maura was quick to interrupt, and the detective smiled in relief. "We're… we're best friends, Jane. I'll always be here for you when you need me."

"I don't know what I would do without you, Maura." Jane pulled the smaller woman into her arms and rested her head on top of her honey-blonde curls.

"Ditto," Maura replied with a smile. Jane chuckled and squeezed her even tighter. Without even thinking about it, the detective tipped her head and pressed her lips to the smaller woman's hair.

They stood like that for a while, content with the comfort they found in the embrace, but Jane eventually loosened her grip and pulled away.

"Sorry, Maur. Nature calls." With one last grin in the medical examiner's direction, Jane practically flew to the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

Maura sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

Boy, had she fallen hard.


	2. Chapter 1

**Howdy. I wasn't expecting to get the response I did for the first chapter and decided to continue. I hope the characters aren't too OOC (you'll see later on what I mean), and I hope you enjoy it!**

"Maura, come on! It's just one cup!" Jane whined as she tried to rescue her travel mug from the honey-blonde's grasp. However, the smaller woman was able to avoid the detective's grabby hands with ease and poured the contents of the mug into the sink. "Aw, what a waste."

"There have been studies that show that consuming caffeine during pregnancy heightens the risk of miscarriage and stillbirth." Maura said. "Caffeine is a stimulant and raises your heart rate, which has negative repercussions for both you and the developing fetus. Beverages like coffee and tea also contain compounds called phenyls that-"

"Okay, googlemouth, I get it." Jane rolled her eyes and walked over to the fridge. "I'll have juice instead."

"Good choice." Maura beamed at the taller woman, who couldn't keep the corners of her lips from turning up in response. Maura's happiness always seemed infectious around Jane for some reason.

"So," Jane leaned against the counter as Maura rinsed out her travel mug in the sink. "I made an appointment with that doctor you recommended. This Thursday."

"That's great, Jane." Maura took the bottle of orange juice from the detective's hands and tried to distract herself from asking the question that rested on the tip of her tongue. As if she could sense the smaller woman's unease, Jane spoke.

"You'd- I mean- Would you be interested in…Would you come with me?" Jane scrambled for words, trying to figure out the right way to ask, and felt like an idiot for stumbling through her request. Nothing could have prepared her for the broad smile that blossomed on Maura's face, and Jane knew in that moment that she had done something right.

"Of course. I would be happy to."

The detective grinned at the honey-blonde and accepted the cup of juice from her outstretched hand. Their fingertips brushed, and Maura held the cup for an extra moment before letting her hand fall away. Jane eyed her curiously for a moment before taking a sip from her mug. There was something… different about the way Maura had been acting, but she couldn't put her finger on it, exactly.

"Oh, damn, it's already after eight!" Jane's eyes had strayed toward the oven where the clock read 8:07. "We're gonna be late."

"It's a good thing we don't have a case, then." Maura said, as she grabbed her mug full of chai tea and made her way toward the front door. Jane followed at her heels, and almost crashed into the smaller woman when she stopped and whirled around. "Wait! Knock on wood!"

Maura rapped her knuckles delicately against the doorframe, her eyes shining from the success of correctly quoting the phrase. Jane let out a bark of laughter, placed her hands gently on Maura's waist, and began guiding her toward the door.

"Come on, little miss superstitious, it's time for work."

The ride to the station was uneventful and Maura spent the entire time eagerly telling the detective what to expect at her first appointment with the obstetrician. Jane paid little attention to what the medical examiner was actually saying, but enjoyed hearing the excitement in her voice.

When they reached the lobby of the precinct, Jane carefully steered Maura away from the café to avoid her mother and hit the button for the elevator.

"I'll see you for lunch?" Maura asked hopefully.

"Duh, who else would I eat with?" Jane replied as the elevator doors opened. "I'll text you?"

"I look forward to it." Maura waved at the detective through the closing doors and was about to push the down arrow when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Morning, Maura." Frankie smiled bashfully at the honey-blonde and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Listen, can we talk somewhere? In private?"

Maura almost asked him what was wrong when the memory came flooding back.

_Oh, god._

She had tried to push the awkward encounter with her best friend's brother out of her mind for the past few days, since she had spent the weekend with Jane, and had almost completely forgotten about their kiss.

"Listen, Frankie, I really don't think that this is the appropriate time to discuss-"

"Please," He interrupted, taking a step closer to her and lowering his voice down to a whisper. "I can't stop thinking about you, and I don't think I can think straight until we work everything out."

"Fine." Maura said with reluctance. "Let's go to my office."

The elevator ride down to the morgue was silent. Maura could tell that the younger man wanted her to say something, but she refrained from speaking a word. When they reached her office, she immediately closed the blinds and sat down on one of her artisan sofas.

"Tell me what's on your mind." Frankie sat down directly beside her, and Maura scooted a respectable distance away before speaking.

"I really don't know-"

"Then let me say what I think." He interrupted, causing Maura to blink in surprise. Where had the polite, considerate Frankie gone? And where did this newfound confidence come from? "Ever since I held your hands during that bomb scare, I've been wanting to kiss you and tell you how I feel about you. You're one in a million, Maura Isles, and I don't want to let any chance I have to be with you pass me by. I know we're from two different backgrounds and I'm not… I'm not as _refined_ or _cultured_, or whatever, but I'll always love you. And listen to you. And make you happy. Isn't that what counts?"

Frankie took a deep breath and stared at her, his cheeks bright red from the embarrassment of pouring his heart out, and Maura felt like she was literally frozen to her seat.

After a moment of tense silence, she tried to speak.

"Frankie, I-"

_I'm in love with someone else. Your older sister, to be specific._

_Wait, what?_

Maura shook her head slightly, as if clearing the cobwebs from her mind, before continuing.

"I appreciate that you care about me and my happiness, but I'm not sure I feel the same about you. Romantically, I mean. I'm sorry."

Frankie stared at her, dumbstruck. Maura reached her hand out to console him, but he pushed it away.

"You must be confused or something," He began, and placed his finger on Maura's lips when she tried to say otherwise. "Because when we kissed, it seemed like you were enjoying it."

"Frankie-"

"And I'm sick of being walked all over, Maura. I'm finally going out and getting what I want instead of being afraid! Isn't that what you want? A man who works for what he wants out of life?"

"Please, just let me-"

"Let me refresh your memory."

He closed the gap between them and hungrily moved his lips against her tightly closed mouth. Maura scooted back and almost fell off the sofa in an attempt to get away, but his hand caught her by the waist and pulled her in closer.

Neither of them noticed the door opening.

"Hey Maur, we've got a body and you weren't answering your…" Jane's sentence trailed off when she realized what was happening.

"Holy shit."

**Yeah. I wasn't anticipating any big conflict this early on, but then again I also forgot about Frankie kissing Maura. I think I blocked it out of my mind completely, actually.**

**Tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 2

A loud smack rang through the tense silence in the office of Boston's Chief Medical Examiner and Frankie Rizzoli reeled backward, clutching the small, hand-shaped mark on his face.

"Don't you _ever_ touch me without my consent," Maura practically leapt from the couch and spoke coldly to the man still sitting there. Jane was frozen in the doorway, unsure of exactly what was going on and afraid for her best friend's current emotional stability. However when Maura began to speak, Jane felt rage boiling deep in her belly and had to restrain herself from beating the shit out of her younger brother. "Or any woman, for that matter. Especially if she tells you, politely, that she wants nothing to do with you on an intimate level."

"Maura, I'm-"

"Save it, Frankie." Jane couldn't keep her fury out of her voice, and Maura glanced over at her in surprise. The detective was bristling with anger and Maura swore she could actually see fire in her eyes. "Get out. I'll deal with you later."

Frankie bolted from the office, still clutching his cheek, and Jane could have sworn that she saw a few tears trickling from his reddened eyes.

"Jane-"

"Maura, are you-"

Both women fell silent. Jane moved from the doorway over to Maura's side and opened her arms. The honey-blonde stepped into her embrace and let out a shuddering sigh as the detective wrapped her arms around her small form.

"I messed everything up." Maura whispered as Jane's fingertips gently caressed her back. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have blown up at him like that."

"Don't apologize." Jane leaned back to search the smaller woman's face and felt a painful, crushing feeling in her chest at the sadness in her eyes. "My brother is an idiot. How could he have possibly thought that coming onto you like that was okay?"

"He said he's had romantic feelings for me ever since the bomb scare." Maura admitted. "And… and he kissed me before. Outside your apartment the night you told me you were pregnant. I didn't want to bring it up because I- I just wanted to forget that it had even happened."

_I didn't want you to know. _

_Because he's the wrong Rizzoli._

"I thought that Frankie was the responsible one," Jane said after a moment. "What the hell has been going on with him lately?"

"Language, Jane." Maura scolded, her tone light. To be honest, she was barely listening to a word that left the detective's lips. Jane's fingers had slid up her back to toy with the tips of her honey-blonde curls, and the only thing Maura could focus on was her deep desire for those hands to pull her in closer and-

"Maura? Hellooo? Anybody in there?"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Maura started and jolted back, out of the detective's embrace.

"You seemed a million miles away for a minute there," Jane teased, a grin forming at the corners of her lips. Unconsciously, she brushed a stray lock of hair out of Maura's eyes and opened her mouth to speak again, but her cell phone began to buzz. She gave the honey-blonde an apologetic look and unclipped her phone from her belt. "Rizzoli."

"The body, Jane. I'll get my bag and we can go." Maura murmured. As she gathered her things, she listened to the detective's conversation."

"Yeah, Frost. No, I didn't forget to tell her. We got a little held up." Jane rolled her eyes at Maura and gestured for her to follow her out the door. "Got it. Yeah. We should be there in about 20. See ya."

"So," Maura pressed the button for the elevator and crossed her arms over her chest. "Details, detective. Where are we going?"

XXX

They arrived at a park on the outskirts of the city and the area around the scene was flooded with reporters, newscasters, and people craning their necks to see over the police barriers. Jane parked the car and deflected all questions from the press by holding her hand up and flashing her badge.

"We won't have any information to share until our medical examiner takes a look at the scene," The detective raised her voice over the crowd, and most of the people fell silent immediately. "So part the seas, people."

The crowd created a gap for the detective and doctor to walk through, and Jane rested her hand on the small of Maura's back to lead her to the scene.

"There are quite a few people here," Maura murmured, just loud enough for the detective to hear. "More than usual."

Jane did not speak, but her fingers curled slightly against the shorter woman's back in response.

"What've we got?" Jane lifted the caution tape and beckoned Maura through. Frost unlocked his iPad and began reading from his notes.

"Her name is Carla Sigiorno," He began. Maura pulled a pair of gloves from her bag and knelt down next to the body. "22 years old, student, from Cambridge. We found her wallet in a trash can about 50 feet from the body."

"Time of death, judging by her watch, was 7:30 either this morning or last night," Maura held up the victim's wrist to show the detectives the shattered glass. "She hasn't yet passed through rigor, so it definitely hasn't been more than 36 hours.

"Look at those bruises on her neck," Jane stood behind the medical examiner and gestured toward the small, purple ovals littering the victim's throat. "Could the cause of death be-"

"You know how I feel about speculation, detective," Maura interrupted, shooting a slightly annoyed look up at the brunette. "But the bruising around her throat is consistent with possible manual strangulation. There is also more bruising on her knuckles and could be particulates under her fingernails, but I'll have to wait until we get back to the morgue to give you more information."

"She fought back." Jane murmured. "Frost, anything special about the victim? Why is everyone and their mother chomping at the bit at the edge of the scene?"

"I haven't found anything out of the ordinary," Frost said. "While you were on your way, I looked through her social media and her records, but nothing came up. She's an engineering major at BCU, her mother is a professor there and her father is a neurologist. She hasn't been in the news recently as far as I know and she seems to be unemployed, judging by her Facebook profile."

"Well detective, it seems it's time for you to do some detecting." Maura joked as she continued to scan the body for any other evidence.

"Thanks, Maur. I appreciate the sass." Jane rolled her eyes at the smaller woman and shot her a wink before making her way over to the crowd of reporters.

"Detective-"

"Can you tell us anything-"

"How long-"

The bombardment began as soon as she reached the tape and once again, she held up a hand to command silence.

"You." Jane pointed to a young man who was rapidly taking notes in a small moleskin journal. "Get over here."

The reporter scampered under the tape and eagerly approached the detective. Jane plucked the notebook out of his hands and began flipping through it.

"Hey!"

"Listen," Jane began after her quick perusal of the man's notes. "Why are there so many of you here, at this scene in particular? Slow news day?"

"Hell no," The man replied. Jane raised her eyebrows in question and handed him back his notes. "The Sox are playing today and there was just a six car pileup on the turnpike, so it's far from slow. As far as I know, every news outlet in the city got a call this morning telling us to cover this particular story."

"What exactly did this caller say?" Jane asked curiously. "Did they give a name?"

"It was an anonymous tip," The reporter said. "He, it sounded like a man, told us that this was going to be a big thing pretty soon, and that we should be out here."

"Is that all?" Jane had an uneasy feeling in her stomach at the reporter's words, and had an inkling that this was no coincidence.

"He also said, specifically, that he wanted to make Detective Rizzoli sweat."

**Chillituna- I'm so sorry, I should have said that there were spoilers! To answer your question, yes! Isn't it crazy?! And I apologize again for ruining it!**

**Rehellams- I had the first half of this chapter written before you posted your review, so I guess great minds think alike ;) **

**Symb0lism- I can relate; I was yelling at the television and my mom couldn't understand why I was so angry. The season finale was a joke. **

**To everyone else who reviewed, thank you so much for your input and support! I'm so happy at the response this story is getting and hope to get more chapters out fairly quickly.**

**I hope the characters didn't seem too OOC, but having Jane freak out at Maura instead of Frankie (especially after Maura's **_**aw hell no**_** moment) didn't sit well with me. And the Maura rant for (anyone that cares) was supposed to be similar to Maura being angry at Frankie in Season 3 Episode 2, "Dirty Little Secret."**


	4. Chapter 3

"Frost!" Jane growled at her partner, her tone harsh and urgent. Maura, who was prepping the body for transport to the morgue with the CSU technicians, snapped her head up in surprise and made her way over to the detective. Something was wrong.

"What's up?" Frost asked. Before he could say anything else, Jane began firing off instructions.

"All of these reporters knew about the body before we did from an anonymous tip this morning. I need you to go through all the phone records you can get ahold of from any newspaper, TV network, blog, whatever spreads the news. Find this guy. Maura," Jane turned to the medical examiner and softened her tone ever-so-slightly. "We need anything, _anything_ that can get us closer to an ID on the killer. Could you dust for prints on the victim's neck and check for any DNA as soon as you get back?"

"I have to follow protocol, but I'll see what I can do." Maura responded. "Jane, what's-"

"I'm going to grab Korsak from his day off and warn Cavanaugh," Jane interrupted. "We don't have a lot of time, and I think we might have… Something bigger on our hands, if you know what I mean."

"Shit." Frost cursed. "I'll get back to you with whatever I can find."

"And I'll ride back with the body and begin the autopsy as soon as possible." Maura added. "Go, Jane."

The detective glanced around the scene one more time before walking purposefully toward her cruiser and speeding off toward Korsak's house. At a red light, she pulled out her phone and dialed the Lieutenant's number.

"This had better be important, Rizzoli." Cavanaugh's voice came out slightly distorted through the speaker of her phone, but Jane could clearly hear his annoyance.

"Oh, it's important, all right. And you're not going to like it."

XXX

It was relatively easy for Jane to find Korsak and fill him in, as he was sitting on his porch looking at pictures of adoptable dogs on the ASPCA website, and they made it back to the station in record time. When they reached the bullpen, Jane's first stop was Frost's desk, where the detective was pounding the keyboard furiously.

"Got anything?" She rested her palms on the desk and leaned in to look at the computer screen.

"Not yet." Frost stopped typing for a second and turned to look at his partner. "I've gotten phone records from public news outlet in the area, and I'm cross-checking for similarities. There have been tons of calls, though, and that's just from the past couple of hours. I also checked through the security footage from the only camera in the park and found nothing, save for a few joggers."

"Keep on looking," Jane rested her hand on his shoulder for a second before turning to Korsak. "I'm going down to the morgue to talk to Maura and be there for the autopsy. Can you find Frankie and go talk to the victim's family?"

"Sure, got it."

Korsak went off to find the younger detective and Jane walked back over to the elevator, jabbed at the down button with her index finger, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Rizzoli!" Cavanaugh stalked over to the detective's side. "We need to keep a lid on this until we figure out what's going on."

"Understood, sir." Jane responded, just as the elevator doors opened. "We're doing everything we can to find this son of a bitch."

"If you need anything, my door is open."

Jane nodded in response and stepped into the elevator.

_I wish I knew what was coming._ _What is this bastard planning?_

"Hello, Jane," Maura had finished her external examination of the body and was gathering her materials to begin the internal autopsy when the detective entered the morgue. "I already had Susie take samples of the particulates from under the victim's fingernails, and I am sorry to say that dusting for fingerprints on her neck yielded no results."

"So he was smart enough to wear gloves. Great." Jane sighed as she leaned against the sink.

"I did, however, find traces of cornstarch on and around her neck," Maura said, and decided to elaborate when the detective shot her a confused look. "Cornstarch is commonly used as the powder inside latex gloves. When the gloves are removed, a small burst of powder enters the air."

"That means we're looking for someone who wears latex gloves. That really narrows it down." Jane said sarcastically.

"I wish I had more evidence for you, and I'm trying everything I can." Maura replied, annoyance creeping into her voice.

"I'm sorry. It's just-" Jane lifted herself onto one of the empty tables and crossed her legs at the ankles. "I'm worried about what this guy's going to do next. He said he wanted to make me sweat, Maur, and I'm feeling it."

"Don't let him get to you." Maura murmured soothingly. "If it eases your mind at all, I am one hundred percent sure that our killer is a man. The size of the bruises are unreasonably large for a woman's hands."

"Thanks." Jane ran her hands through her hair in exasperation and tried to keep her tone light. "That narrows it down. Found anything interesting?"

"From the internal examination? No," The honey-blonde said. "The victim was a perfectly healthy 22 year old female. The only medical abnormality that I have found was that her liver was beginning to show symptoms of cirrhosis."

"Liver disease?" Jane clarified. "That sucks."

"Yep," Maura said, engrossed in her work. "Other complications of cirrhosis in the liver include kidney failure, diabetes, premature menopause-"

"Not to be insensitive," Jane interrupted. "But I don't think she has to worry about any of that anymore."

Jane sat in silence as Maura replaced all of the victim's internal organs and began to stitch up her chest. When she finished, the medical examiner tossed her gloves and mask into the garbage, removed her goggles, and edited her notes one last time before turning to the detective.

"I-"

She was interrupted by the buzzing of Jane's phone and gestured for her to take it. The detective gave her an apologetic look and unclipped her phone from her belt.

"Rizzoli." _It's Korsak_, Jane mouthed. "Did you-What? Are you fucking serious? We're on our way."

"Jane," Maura rested a hand on the detective's arm and squeezed it gently. Jane ended the call on her phone a few moments later and let out a sigh.

"We have another body."

**Ooh. The suspense.**

**Question: Would you guys like longer chapters with a little more time between updates, or is this okay? Because I'm cool with doing either.**

**And if you see anything wrong with any of the crime scene/medical stuff, just tell me. I'm a French and English education major and have no experience with forensics or police work other than what I've seen on TV. **


	5. Chapter 4

**This chapter was rough to write. The first sentence is your warning. Skip it if you need to. Or skip to the end. Whatever's best for you, I guess?  
Also, I'm so sorry for being the shittiest person in the universe and not updating for a million years. I went on tour with a DCI drum and bugle corps this summer (which means that from the end of May to the beginning of August, I lived on a bus, slept on high school gym floors, and spent 14+ hours a day on a football field running around and playing a euphonium. We made finals and it was incredible) so I wasn't able to update for a really long time. I'm also in my college marching band, which is crazy, just started coursework for my English major (I was originally only a French major), and started dating somebody.  
But I'm back. And I plan to update regularly. If I don't, feel free to spam me with messages, form an angry mob outside my dorm, etc. **

"It's a kid, Maura." Jane had let Maura drive them to the scene, for once, and was curled up in the passenger seat of the medical examiner's Prius. "We weren't fast enough, and he killed a kid."

For a moment, there was complete silence. Neither one wanted to justify their inability to catch the murderer they had been working themselves ragged to find, and Maura took a deep, ragged breath before speaking.

"We can't make any assumptions yet, you know that." Maura reached her hand out toward the detective, who gripped hers like a lifeline. "And don't blame yourself. It is impossible to catch a killer with this little evidence."

"I just… I don't know if it's the hormones, but I can't imagine losing my child," Jane's empty hand was clutching her abdomen protectively, and Maura could see tears beginning to streak down the detective's cheeks. "Damn it, I _don't _cry. I _can't _cry. Especially not now."

"I'm sorry to say that being overly emotional is common during the first trimester," Maura squeezed Jane's hand gently and kept herself from staring at the brunette as she wiped her tears away. "And crying is very normal for pregnant women. Let it out, Jane."

Maura felt her heart clench painfully as the usually tough-as-nails detective broke down in the seat next to her, and pulled over on the side of the highway.

"What are you doing?" Jane choked out through her sobs. Her eyes were bright red and glistening with tears, and Maura's heart ached painfully from just looking at her.

In one fluid motion, the medical examiner unclipped her seatbelt and reached over to pull the other woman into a tight hug.

"It's going to be okay," She soothed the slightly-hysterical woman by rubbing her back and pressing her lips to her temple. "You need to calm down, honey."

_Oh crap. Honey? Where did that come from?_

Thankfully, Jane seemed to have ignored the nickname and Maura breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thanks." The detective's arms had snaked around the smaller woman's waist and practically pulled her onto her lap. After a few moments, Maura, with great reluctance, extracted herself from the embrace and settled back in the drivers' seat.

"Here." The medical examiner opened the center console between the seats, rummaged around for a moment, and pulled out a pack of tissues with a triumphant smile. "Just in case you need to clean up a little before we get there."

Jane wordlessly took the proffered tissues and began blotting at her reddened eyes. Maura waited a few moments for the detective to get herself under control before putting the car in drive and continuing to the scene.

When they arrived, the area around the crime scene was once again flooded with reporters. Jane exited the Prius with her head held high, her badge in hand, and an emotionless expression plastered on her face. All signs of her recent emotional breakdown had disappeared completely, and the detective was focused solely on her job.

Maura grabbed her bag from the backseat and hurried after the taller woman, who had already reached the caution tape.

"Thank you," Maura murmured as Jane lifted the yellow tape and ushered the medical examiner through with a hand on her lower back. The honey-blonde turned to look up at the detective and a look of confusion crossed her features from the icy glare fixed on her face. "Jane?"

The detective's glare softened and her fingers pressed gently against the fabric of Maura's dress, urging her to move away from the sea of journalists and toward the body.

"Sorry." Jane mumbled. "I-"

"Don't apologize." Maura interrupted the taller woman and cast a reassuring look back over her shoulder. "We're both a little… tense right now. It's okay."

"It's not, but thanks anyway, Maur." Jane sighed softly. "Let's catch this son of a bitch."

Maura wordlessly led the way past the circle of white-faced beat cops toward Korsak, and the Lieutenant. Each detective's face looked haunted, as if they had been to hell and back again, and with one look at the body, Maura understood the source of their anguish.

"The victim is a young, Hispanic male, around- " The honey-blonde's voice cracked and she cleared her throat before continuing. "Around eight to ten years old. The bruises around his neck appear to be consistent with those inflicted on Carla Sigiorno, but I'll need to do a thorough comparison back at the morgue to be sure."

"Do we have an ID yet?" Jane rasped. Maura raised her eyes to look at the detective, and was surprised to see that the brightness that was usually present had disappeared completely. "Has CSU done a sweep? Do we have _anything_ on this fucking-"

"Cool it, Rizzoli." Lieutenant Cavanaugh placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed in warning. "The victim's name is Jason Martinez. He was nine years old and was last seen getting into a strange car after getting off the school bus in front of his house. We got a plate number and put an APB out on the car, but haven't heard anything back. And CSU did their sweep about twenty minutes ago. The only thing they found was a box of rubber gloves."

"Did you dust for prints?" Korsak asked hopefully. "'Cause the doc said that the killer wore rubber gloves when he strangled Carla Sigiorno."

"Didn't need to." Cavanaugh grunted. "The bastard left us a sealed container. Brand new."

"He's playing games with us," Jane growled. "Trying to make us break. Trying to make _me _break."

"This is not your fault, Detective Rizzoli, and if I hear even one word of self-blame out of your mouth, I'll have you on desk duty so fast your head'll spin." The lieutenant responded. Jane's mouth snapped shut and Maura, who had been paying little attention to the detectives' conversation, let out a gasp of surprise.

"Jane, look." She gestured to a few reddish-brown flecks of liquid in the dirt beside the body. "Our victim had no open wounds, but there were signs of a struggle. This must be from the killer!"

"That's my girl!" Jane rested her hand on Maura's shoulder and shot the smaller woman an appreciative smile. Maura beckoned one of the crime lab techs over to collect the samples, and the detectives sprang into action. Jane turned to Frost, who had just returned from the edge of the scene with a beat cop in tow. "Frost, any news from the cops canvassing the area?"

"You're gonna want to hear this." Frost gestured to the officer beside him to speak.

"We have a witness who saw the vehicle our potential suspect was driving leave the scene." The officer reported. "The witness's name is Josiah Hammond, and we found him sitting in a refrigerator box behind a dumpster at the entrance to the park."

"Bring him in for questioning." Jane ordered, and the officer responded with a curt nod. When she left, Jane turned back toward Frost. "We're gonna need any security cam footage you can get from anywhere around here."

"Done and done." Frost responded. His tablet was already open and in his hands, and his phone was to his ear in a flash.

"Jack-The lieutenant and I are going to inform the victim's family." Korsak spoke softly from behind her, and Jane whirled around to face her two superiors. "Are you sure?"

"No, but it needs to be done. We've got it." Cavanaugh replied.

"If you're done with the crime scene, I would like to begin the preparations to transport the body back to the morgue." Maura interjected, her eyes fixed on Jane. "I'll look for as many similarities as possible between the two victims after finishing the autopsy."

"Get your people on it." Cavanaugh ordered before Jane could open her mouth, and Maura immediately flagged down the crime techs once more. "Rizzoli, you head back to the precinct and get some information from our witness. We'll regroup back at the precinct later."

"Yes, sir."

The area, which had been morose and stagnant before Maura and Jane's arrival, was now full of activity. As each of the detectives exited to complete their various assignments, it seemed that more and more technicians and officers appeared out of the ether to gather the evidence and clear the scene.

"Hey, Maura?" Jane approached the honey-blonde, who was currently lecturing a CSU tech on how to properly dismantle the crime scene and move the body without destroying precious evidence, and tapped her on the shoulder.

"One moment, please." Maura held her finger out in the detective's direction and Jane, for once, stood quietly and listened to the smaller woman's instructions. "Anthony, it is extremely important that you follow the procedure I gave you explicitly. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Doctor Isles." The man in question looked to be around twenty years old and rolled his eyes at the medical examiner's request.

"Hey," Jane stepped forward, into Maura's vision, and bristled with annoyance. "This woman is the Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and your superior. You will treat her with the respect she deserves and do exactly as she says, or I will personally make your life on the job a living hell. Do you want that, what was your name again, Tony?"

The man looked from the angry detective to the medical examiner, whose eyes were shining with something akin to pride, and gulped.

"No ma'am. I'm sorry, Doctor Isles. It won't happen again."

Before Maura could accept his apology, Jane spoke once more.

"It had better not. Go do your job, kid."

The man scurried off to assist in transporting the body, and Jane let out an annoyed huff. Maura, on the other hand, was trying to contain her amusement.

"What's so funny, Doctor?" Jane raised an eyebrow at the honey-blonde. Her lips were trembling with the effort of keeping her laughter at bay.

"He was terrified of you, _Detective_." She snorted, and Jane couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable she looked.

_Wait, what?_

"I was perfectly capable of handling the situation." Maura continued. "Anyway, what was it you needed?"

"We carpooled here," Jane said. "Do you need a ride back, or are you going in the bus?"

Maura glanced at the techs' painfully slow process of moving the body and sighed.

"For the sake of our evidence, I should probably go with these buffoons."

"Right." Jane felt a pang of disappointment in her chest and tried to keep it out of her voice. She shouldn't be upset that her friend was doing her job. She shouldn't need Maura by her side at every moment. Right?

"I'll begin the autopsy as soon as we return." Maura said. "Feel free to come down after you finish questioning the witness."

"There's no place I'd rather be." Jane joked. However, an unsettling feeling crept into her stomach when she realized how true her words actually were.

She would rather be spending time with Maura than doing literally anything else. Was that normal, to be so fixated on your best friend that-

"I'll see you later, then." Maura brushed past the detective and squeezed the taller woman's forearm as she passed by.

"See ya." Jane whispered to the air in front of her.

After a moment, she snapped out of her weird, trancelike state and practically sprinted back to the Prius.

They had leads and a murder to solve.

Her feelings would have to take a backseat, for now.


End file.
